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04 December 2017

iPad Generation's Fingers Not Ready to Write, Teachers Say

iPad generation's fingers not ready to write, teachers say

by Simon Leo Brown, ABC Radio Melbourne, 14 November 2017Kindergarten and early primary teachers have aired their concerns that the rise of touchscreen devices means more children are starting school not ready to learn handwriting.

Children's preference for screen time over craft time hasbeen blamed for a drop in fine motor skills.(Michael Hall/Riser)

A Saturday morning discussion about the benefits of technology for children prompted Carolyn to send an SMS to ABC Radio Melbourne.

A primary school teacher, Carolyn said she and her colleagues had noticed "a big decline in fine motor skills" among children arriving at prep and kindergarten.

Carolyn and her colleagues blamed their young students' declining dexterity on their use of touchscreen devices such as tablets and smartphones.

"Children are holding crayons and scissors less and making fewer things with their hands," she said.

"We've noticed that sometimes, even if you pass a pencil or a paintbrush to a child, they're not quite sure how to receive it and how to hold it."

Tablets, smartphones replacing messy play
Paediatric occupational therapist Lisa Clark said Carolyn was not the only teacher who had noticed the trend.

"In my role I work in schools for most of the week, and we interact with teachers a lot, so these discussions are something we have all the time," she told ABC Radio Melbourne's Hilary Harper.

"Both kinder teachers and also early primary teachers are feeding back to us about children's handwriting and the concerns that they have."

Ms Clark said that in general children spend less time than they used to involved in "messy play" such as modelling with playdough or being crafty with scissors and glue.

"Children in families are in households where there's a lot of electronic devices, from iPhones to iPads and computers, so we know that that's another option for children," she said.

She said children who spent too much time on touchscreens did not develop the fine motor skills they needed when it came time to learn to write.

"We are seeing a lot of children come into our practice who are having difficulties with motor skills," she said.

It's not just handwriting, either. Ms Clark said many children had difficulty holding scissors, tying shoelaces or even using cutlery.

Does it matter?

In a world of smartphones, does it really matter if children can't write by hand?

"Obviously iPads, computers and laptops are in schools and they are being used as part of the curriculum," Ms Clark said, adding that there are benefits for students.

"Technology offers fantastic things for their learning; they've got a lot of ability to research and look for further information quickly."

But for the moment, at least, children still need to learn to write legibly.

The national NAPLAN tests, which begin at year three, are written tests, as are high school exams.

Ms Clark said she had seen teenagers approaching exams who have been told by their teachers that their writing is illegible, and other children for whom writing causes pain or fatigue.

She said children should know how to hold scissors or grasp a pencil by the time they finish four-year-old kinder.

So what should parents do?

Ms Clark said parents needed to make the time for hands-on activities with their children.

Modelling with playdough was excellent for building finger strength, she said, as was crafting with scissors, beads and glue.

Not all screen-free activities are created equal, however.

Building blocks, for example, don't require the same level of dexterity as drawing.

"Holding a pencil is a more dynamic movement of the hand — the index finger and thumb really need to be engaged, so it's more of a complex movement," Ms Clark said.

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My name is Meris. Through these articles, I would like to raise awareness of health and environment issues in order to better protect ourselves, our children and future generations. See also my Website in French Mieux Prévenir.

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